James Henderson Lee III (January 4, 1923 – July 2, 2002) was an American screenwriter. He is best known for writing several episodes of the 1977 TV miniseries ''

Roots A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients. Root or roots may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusin ...

''.

Career

Born in Pleasant Ridge,

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, James Lee graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

and initially worked as a stage actor in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. Not finding much success, he turned to

screenwriting Screenwriting or scriptwriting is the art and craft of writing scripts for mass media such as feature films, television productions or video games. It is often a freelance profession. Screenwriters are responsible for researching the story, dev ...

to supplement his income. His fifth play ''Career'', which drew on his experiences as a struggling actor, was an Off Broadway hit. Lee went on to write the screenplay for the 1959 film of the same name, starring

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor, and comedian. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Cool", he is regarded as one of the most popular entertainers of ...

Tony Franciosa Anthony George Franciosa (né Papaleo; October 25, 1928 – January 19, 2006) was an American actor most often billed as Tony Franciosa at the height of his career. He began his career on stage and made a breakthrough portraying the brother of t ...

, and

Shirley MacLaine Shirley MacLaine (born Shirley MacLean Beaty; April 24, 1934) is an American actress and author. With a career spanning over 70 years, she has received List of awards and nominations received by Shirley MacLaine, numerous accolades, including a ...

. Moving into television, Lee wrote four episodes of the anthology series '' Omnibus''. One of these, "Capital Punishment", won an

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America which is based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards hon ...

for Best Episode in a TV Series. Lee continued to work as a screenwriter, primarily in television, from the 1960s through the 1980s. His greatest success came with the 1977 miniseries ''

''. Adapting the 1976 novel by

Alex Haley Alexander Murray Palmer Haley (August 11, 1921 – February 10, 1992) was an American writer and the author of the 1976 book '' Roots: The Saga of an American Family.'' ABC adapted the book as a television miniseries of the same name and ...

, Lee wrote four of the series' twelve episodes, and co-wrote four others. He and

William Blinn William Frederick Blinn (July 21, 1937 – October 22, 2020) was an American screenwriter and television producer. Life and career Blinn was born in Toledo, Ohio, the son of Clare Allen and Pearl Ariel (Schaeffer) Blinn. Blinn began his career i ...

received a 1977

Humanitas Prize The Humanitas Prize is an American award for film and television writing, presented to writers whose work explores the human condition in a nuanced and meaningful manner. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser—also the founder of ...

for writing "Part IV" of ''Roots'', and Lee was nominated for an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

for "Part V". He had previously received an Emmy nomination in 1963 for the drama ''The Invincible Mr. Disraeli'' (shown on ''

Hallmark Hall of Fame ''Hallmark Hall of Fame'', originally called ''Hallmark Television Playhouse'', is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark Cards, a Kansas City, Missouri, Kansas Citybased greeting card company. It is the longest-ru ...

''). He received a third Emmy nomination in 1980 for the Marilyn Monroe biopic ''

This Year's Blonde ''This Year's Blonde'' is a 1980 American television film directed by John Erman and starring Constance Forslund as Marilyn Monroe, Lloyd Bridges as Johnny Hyde, and Norman Fell. Based on the Garson Kanin novel '' Moviola'' about Monroe, the f ...

''.

Personal life

James Lee married actress Neva Patterson in 1957, after they met on the set of the Broadway play ''

The Seven Year Itch ''The Seven Year Itch'' is a 1955 American romantic comedy film directed by Billy Wilder, who co-wrote the screenplay with George Axelrod. Based on Axelrod's 1952 The Seven Year Itch (play), play of the same name, the film stars Marilyn Monroe ...

''. The couple adopted a daughter, Megan, and a son, Filippo. Lee died of

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...

and

emphysema Emphysema is any air-filled enlargement in the body's tissues. Most commonly emphysema refers to the permanent enlargement of air spaces (alveoli) in the lungs, and is also known as pulmonary emphysema. Emphysema is a lower respiratory tract di ...

in 2002 at age 79.

Select filmography

Television

* '' The Clock'' (1950) * '' Lights Out'' (1950) * '' Omnibus'' (1957–1960) * ''The Invincible Mr. Disraeli'' (1963) * '' The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1967) * '' Rafferty'' (1977) - creator, writer, and producer * ''

'' (1977) * ''

'' (1980) * '' My Wicked, Wicked Ways: The Legend of Errol Flynn'' (1985) * '' Napoleon and Josephine: A Love Story'' (1987)

Film

* ''

Career A career is an individual's metaphorical "journey" through learning, work (human activity), work and other aspects of personal life, life. There are a number of ways to define career and the term is used in a variety of ways. Definitions The ...

'' (1959) * ''

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' is a picaresque novel by American author Mark Twain that was first published in the United Kingdom in December 1884 and in the United States in February 1885. Commonly named among the Great American Novels, th ...

'' (1960) * '' Banning'' (1967) * ''

Counterpoint In music theory, counterpoint is the relationship of two or more simultaneous musical lines (also called voices) that are harmonically dependent on each other, yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. The term originates from the Latin ...

'' (1968) * ''

Change of Habit ''Change of Habit'' is a 1969 American crime drama musical film directed by William A. Graham, and starring Elvis Presley and Mary Tyler Moore. Written by James Lee, S.S. Schweitzer, and Eric Bercovici, based on a story by John Joseph and Rich ...

'' (1969)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, James (screenwriter) 1923 births 2002 deaths 20th-century American male actors American male screenwriters Deaths from emphysema Harvard University alumni People from Pleasant Ridge, Michigan Screenwriters from Michigan 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters American television writers American male television writers